Newburgh Prep charter school picks Broadway location

CITY OF NEWBURGH — The mid-Hudson's first charter school now has an address to call its own.

Pauline Liu

CITY OF NEWBURGH — The mid-Hudson's first charter school now has an address to call its own.

Soon, it hopes to have students to enroll there.

The Newburgh Preparatory Charter High School is locating to 471 Broadway in the city. The 10,000-square-foot space, on the second floor of the Federal Building, formerly was occupied by the BOCES Adult Education Center and is large enough for about a dozen classrooms, said Executive Director Tom Fitzgerald.

The independently run, alternative public school for grades 9-12 won approval from the state Board of Regents in December. It's scheduled to open its doors to the first 105 students in August. The school will be geared toward high school dropouts, ages 16-21.

Spokeswoman Beth Enser said student recruitment began last month with the kick-off of the Ambassador Program; armed with brochures and applications, recruiters have been reaching out to potential students and their families.

An open house for parents is now in the works, Enser said, and enrollment applications are available through many community-based organizations across Orange County.

"The number of applications received by April 1 will determine whether or not a lottery needs to take place on April 15," Fitzgerald said.

As with many charter schools, classes at Newburgh Prep will be longer than those at most public schools. Classes are expected to be from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. The program will feature a daily advisory period for each student, as well as social-emotional support and community service projects.

By the 2017-18 school year, enrollment is expected to exceed 300 students.

The school's Board of Trustees will have its regular monthly meeting at 4 p.m. Thursday at the Kaplan Career Academy Administration Building, 623 Blooming Grove Turnpike (Route 94) in New Windsor. The meeting will be open to the public. An update on student recruitment efforts will be on the agenda.